part-time atelier

The Part-Time Atelier is our most vigorous course offered. You draw first. Then you paint in black and white. Finally you learn to handle a color palette and then compose your own compositions. The part-time atelier has a studio part and a life study (from the live model) part. The Part-Time atelier puts a strong emphasis on the studio portion of training as a large part of this can be completed by the student at home. The study of how to draw, learn paint handling, learn to paint etc are systematic and can be broken into smaller lessons. This is the beauty of the part-time atelier program. The benefit of this for students is immense because you will learn how to draw and paint just by doing the class and completing the exercises with valuable feedback from your instructors.

All our Part-Time Atelier programs offer the same progression of training. First you Draw. (The Drawing Program Intensive). Then you learn to do oil wash drawings, then oil paint in black and white. Then you learn to handle a limited color palette, and finally a full color palette. (The Paining Program Intensive)

There is a 3rd year program coming soon which will include composition, advanced color and more.

Each Program has studio time (casts, still-lifes, flat copies) and model time (life drawing or painting from the nude model or from the portrait model).

Each of these programs runs from September to May the following year. The program as it is structured now would take 2 years to complete. 3 years if you took the advanced 3rd year. It is important to note that most people's life drawing or painting skills lag behind their studio art mastery of the same skills. So for example, a student may have completed the first year drawing requirements but still need to complete more life drawing the second year.

what is atelier training?

Atelier training carries on the wisdom of the European old masters passed from instructor to student in a systematic fashion. (See Bucks County Classical Arts Centers Lineage Here.) Atelier is French for workshop (pronounced AH- te- LEE- AY). They can be workshops of any sort but applied to realism in art they indicate training in the craft of painting at a very high level. In an atelier, students come and work in a dedicated space on projects at their level of expertise. The master artist offers feedback in intervals leaving the students work time to complete the exercises.Atelier training focuses first on drawing, then black and white painting, then limited color, and then full color painting. Time is divided between a studio portion of training which includes drawing or painting casts, flat copies and still objects. The life drawing portion is substantial in full time atelier training. Students work from the model five days a week or more for hours at a time on sustained poses. Full time atelier training requires 3- 6 years of dedicated full time training.

The Bucks County Classical Arts Center does not discriminate against applicants, instructors or students on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, or sexual orientation.